Future technology
Oil is unlikely to be replaced in the medium term as the source of power for the great majority of road vehicles.... Oil is nevertheless a finite resource and reliance on it for transportation cannot be regarded as a sustainable course of action in the long term. Eventually an alternative or alternatives will have to be found (2.73).
The longer-term development of vehicle propulsion is likely to involve a combination of an ultra-light body and hybrid propulsion based on separate electric motors on each wheel, with the prime mover initially a petrol or diesel engine, but at a later stage a fuel cell. This kind of design can in principle give very large improvements in energy efficiency (2.79).
Electric and hybrid propulsion should be developed for certain markets. In the long term the preferred technology for electric propulsion may be to generate electricity on board vehicles through an electrochemical reaction between hydrogen and oxygen within a fuel cell (2.80).
- The Government is keen to work in partnership with vehicle manufacturers and the oil industry to see what more can be done to accelerate the pace of change in vehicle technology and to ensure that there are incentives for people and businesses to buy more fuel-efficient, less polluting vehicles. The Cleaner Vehicles Task Force, bringing in environmentalists and other organisations as well, is taking this work forward.
- The Government is also supporting the Foresight Vehicle Initiative, which aims to promote the development of motor vehicle technology that is significantly more environmentally friendly and capable of meeting mass market requirements of safety, performance, cost and desirability. There is a close link to the Cleaner Vehicles Task Force, and Government is supporting a Foresight Vehicle LINK programme which provides for collaborative research with industry in this area.
- Action is being taken by the Government to encourage the development of fuel cell technology through the DTI's Advanced Fuel Cells Programme. It is supporting research and development in collaboration with industry to assess various types of fuel cell for both transport and stationary applications. The Government has been conducting a review of New and Renewable Energy and that includes a review of the Advanced Fuel Cells Programme.
- A Land Transport and Marine Technologies Key Action has been successfully negotiated by the Government as part of the ongoing discussions in the EU Fifth Framework Programme for Research and Technological Development. This will provide funding for European-based collaborations to develop technologies in support of vehicles which are capable of meeting all public demands for sustainable mobility and improved safety while reducing their environmental impact. Final adoption of the Framework decisions is expected by the end of 1998
Published 23 December 1998
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